We start the season on Saturday with Plymouth Argyle making the journey north to South Cheshire. They are under new management this season with the arrival of our former captain Ryan Lowe from Bury and assistant Steve Schumacher, who was first-team coach at Gigg Lane.
Over the summer, Plymouth have signed 8 new players over the summer so far with defender Will Aimson, midfielders Kyle McFadzean and Danny Mayor and forwards Dom Telford and our Academy Alumni Byron Moore, who have all followed Lowe and Schumacher from Bury. They have also signed midfielder Joe Edwards from Walsall, attacking midfielder Jose Baxter from Oldham Athletic and goalkeeper Alex Palmer on loan from West Bromwich Albion for the season.
Looking back in the archives, the two teams have met 19 times with Plymouth leading the head-to-head with 9 wins to 6 and 4 draws. Crewe’s biggest win came in a 3-0 victory at the Alexandra Stadium in December 2004 whilst Argyle’s biggest victory came at Home Park by the same scoreline 2 months later. The last season that the teams met in was the 16/17 season with the Pilgrims winning both games 2-1.
Who are the officials for the game?
The officials for this game see Matthew Donohue as the man in the middle with Richard Wigglesworth and Lisa Rashid his assistants and Darren Wilding as the fourth official. The following Crewe games have been refereed by Donohue in the last 5 years:
- Forest Green Rovers 1-0 Crewe Alexandra (22nd December 2018)
- Crewe Alexandra 3-0 Notts County (13th April 2019) – Taylor-Sinclair, Wintle, Jones
I asked Plymouth Argyle supporter Josh Simpson for his thoughts going into the game and for the season ahead.
How would you describe your transfer activity this summer?
Transfer activity has been good, pleased with the overall level of quality we’ve got coming in. Obviously lots of ex-Bury players which to some is a concern but I’m happy that they have come down.
Which position is the one that you should improve the most from the squad you currently have?
I’d say we definitely need to strengthen at centre back, and a lot of fellow Argyle fans would probably agree there.
What do you think the team will be for the game?
The lineup for the first game should be: Cooper, Riley, Sawyer, Canavan, Aimson, Macfadzean, Edwards, J. Grant, Mayor, Taylor, Telford (5-3-2)
How would you set-up to nullify your team?
In terms of stopping the team, from what I’ve seen so far we are vulnerable on the counter and down the right, anyone who could capitalise on that has a good chance.
Who is the dangerman for this game?
The obvious and standout dangerman is Danny Mayor. Top-quality player for L1, let alone L2.
What do you think is a realistic aim for Argyle this season?
And realistically, playoffs should be a minimum aim, but I personally would like to see us push for top 3.
